July 30, 2008

Living Proof

Based on some intriguing preliminary studies in animals, J. Timothy
Lightfoot, a kinesiologist, and his team at the University of North
Carolina, Charlotte, suggest that genetics may indeed predispose some
of us to sloth. Using mice specially bred and selected according to
their activity levels, Lightfoot identified 20 different genomic
locations that work in tandem to influence their activity levels —
specifically, how far the animals will run. Lightfoot's team is the
first to identify these genetic areas and the first to figure out that
they function in concert. The researchers say the areas they found on
the mouse genome may have analogs in humans, and the UNC team is now
gearing up to conduct a similar study in men and women. "We have put
forward a fairly complete genomic map of the areas that are associated
with regulation of physical activity," says Lightfoot, whose study is
published in the current issue of the Journal of Heredity.